Operation: Heart Angels
by Jet Wolf
Summary: Usagi is devastated and crying in phone booths. Did Mamoru really think he could dump her without a reason and that the Inner Senshi would just stand by and watch it happen? Oh, silly man. [Set during R, between episodes 61 and 77.]
1. Mission Start

**Standard disclaimer:**The characters aren't mine. This should come as no surprise. I am simply a teller of stories that occasionally claw their way desperately out of my head.

**Setting:**Sailor Moon R, between episodes 61 and 77.

**Notes:**15-ish years ago, I was deeply into Sailor Moon. Time passed, attention shifted, life happened as it's wont to do. Recently I decided to go back and rewatch the show from beginning to end, just as a lark. Imagine my surprise to discover that it was even better than I remembered, and I fell in love with it all over again. Of course accompanying that love is my brain hauling out all its old dusty favourite toys and playing with them non-stop. Result: my first Sailor Moon fanfic in over a decade.

This came about as a result of being frustrated as hell by the lack of Senshi involvement during Usagi and Mamoru's break-up. I simply can't accept that they stood idly by and watched Usagi's heart break week after week.

So I say they didn't. I say they were anything but passive spectators. This is that story.

_(1 December 2012)_

* * *

**Operation: Heart Angels**

Usagi walked across the courtyard of the Hikawa Shrine, headed toward the massive flight of stairs and the bustling street beyond. Her shoulders were slumped and her long blonde pigtails nearly brushed the ground. Yuuichiro stopped sweeping and gave her a friendly wave, but if Usagi saw the gesture, she ignored it.

Her four best friends watched her go, their faces broadcasting concern. Then varying levels of embarrassment as she collided with another teenage girl visiting the shrine. The girl immediately began bowing at the waist and begging forgiveness; Usagi merely waved distractedly and plodded onward as though the interruption never happened. Soon she was descending the steps and was out of sight, free to cause unobservant havoc on the world beyond her shoes without the watchful and, in some cases, disapproving eyes of her protectors.

"That girl's gonna kill herself," Minako said in bright conversational tone as she stood by the open doorway.

"Worse," Rei replied with a sigh. "She's going to kill someone else and then we'll have to hear about it for the next six weeks."

Makoto looked at her friends and frowned thoughtfully. "Is it bad that I'm almost hoping she does, just to get her mind off of Mamoru? That's bad, right?"

The general consensus agreed that this wasn't exactly an ideal solution, no.

"It's clear that this can't continue," said Ami. Her homework lay in front of her, only partially completed and temporarily forgotten in this most dire of situations. "It's already affecting Usagi's concentration and grades. With high school entrance exams around the corner, every day she isn't studying could be doing grave damage to her future."

Ami was suddenly aware of the extreme scrutiny she was now under and somehow managed to keep from completely shrinking away from it.

Minako shook her head. "It's so cute how you think she'd be studying."

"Also she looks so sad and I don't like it," Ami confessed, suddenly finding her hands fascinating.

"Right there with you," agreed Mako with a vigorous nod.

Minako left her vigil in the doorway and joined her friends around the table in the center of the room. "Okay then, so how do we fix this?"

"Hands up for violence?" Rei asked the group, her arm already in the air. It was quickly joined by Makoto, who seemed to feel that this was perhaps the most ingenious solution to a problem ever devised by humankind.

"Violence is NOT an answer," Ami chastised. Minako quickly redirected her extending hand to scratch thoughtfully behind her head.

"It is when you ask the right question," Rei said with a grumble as she lowered her hand. Reluctantly, Mako did the same.

Ami continued as though she hadn't heard Rei. "They just need to talk. I'm sure whatever misunderstanding—"

"Yeah, I don't think it's that simple," interrupted Mako. "You weren't there at that charm store. Mamoru looked like he couldn't even be in the same ROOM as Usagi."

Minako was in agreement with Makoto. "Short of tying him up and forcing him to stay put, I don't think talking is just going to happen." She shot a sidelong glare at Ami. "And since apparently violence is a big no-no ..."

"Gods, what did she DO?" Rei suddenly exclaimed, her frustration plain on her face.

Instantly, the other three leapt to Usagi's defense.

"Hey it's not HER fault!"

"That's not fair, Rei."

"Rei, Usagi made it clear that Mamoru—"

"I know, I KNOW!" said Rei, thrusting her hand up as though to ward off the protests. She sighed then looked at her friends in earnest. "I know it wasn't her. I just ... If it was her, we could fix this, you know? Tell her what to say, or what NOT to say. If it was Usagi then we'd know this was just some stupid thing and we could put it all back together. But if it's Mamoru ..."

She let her sentence trail off, but each knew the others were thinking the same thing. They had spent all this time fighting alongside Mamoru, yet none of them could claim to be close to the man. Their longest conversations with him tended to consist of addled non sequiturs punctuated by demonic destruction, and that just didn't leave much opportunity to coolly slide in a "Hey, so about your thousand-year old romance ..."

If Mamoru was causing the problem, then that was where they had to start.

But how?

"I'll talk to him," Mako said, drawing herself to her full height. Even seated, it was pretty impressive. Still, the way Mako said "talk" made it sounds like her definition might vary slightly from Mamoru's, despite agreeing to the violence embargo.

Minako had a better idea. "I think it should be Ami."

Ami blinked several times in quick succession. "Me?"

"You," Minako confirmed.

"But that doesn't ... My last conversation with Mamoru about this wasn't exactly fruitful."

Mako brushed the idea aside with a wave of her hand. "That was what, less than a minute weeks ago?"

Minako eagerly recalled the conversation. "I think you said it went something like:" She raised her voice slightly in a fair imitation of Ami. "'Mamoru-san, about Usagi—'" Her tone dropped to a stern gruffness. "'I don't want to talk about it.'" Back up to Ami's voice. "'Oh okay then.'"

A frown creased Ami's forehead. "That's not entirely accurate. Besides as I recall I was fairly distracted trying to race from the airport to save you all from freezing to death."

Rei favoured Minako with a smirk. "She's got you there."

"Well maybe next time some of us will remember what our powers are," Minako said haughtily.

"Oh my god, let it go, Minako."

"You're FIRE, Rei. Honestly."

"SO ANYWAY," Mako said, forcibly steering the conversation back on track. "Ami is the best one to talk to Mamoru because...?"

Turning away from Rei as though their budding argument never happened – and thus missing the daggers Rei was glaring directly into her brain – Minako happily picked up the thread. "Ami's the best to talk to him because they kinda get each other, you know? It's like some sort of Smart People bond that is SO beyond me."

"Imagine that," Rei muttered, not really trying not to be heard.

"Plus she's so sweet and nice he won't have time to get all defensive." Minako shot Makoto an apologetic glance. "I mean no offense, Mako-chan, but you're pretty intimidating."

Mako grinned and shrugged. "I am fine with intimidating, none taken."

"Loathe as I am to admit it, that makes sense," Rei said.

"Ami-chan it is then!" agreed Mako with a decisive nod.

Ami didn't look entirely confident, but she did look determined. "All right then. I'll do my best."

"All we can ask," Mako told her, placing a reassuring hand on shoulder.

"All right!" Minako exclaimed, surveying the room with a jubilant smile. "'Operation: Heart Angels' is go!" She enthusiastically pumped her fist into the air.

Jubilant smiles were not received in return. Holding her position, Minako inclined her head at her arm and gave her friends expectant glances.

"'Operation: Heart Angels'," Rei repeated in a flat voice.

"Is go!" Minako agreed, again pumping her fist. She peered at them, waiting.

One by one, with varying degrees of reluctance, three more fists rose into the air.

"Yay team!" cheered Minako.


	2. First Strike

The opportunity for Ami to talk to Mamoru didn't present itself for several more days. During that time each of the Senshi held out hope that things would resolve themselves; Chibi-Usa's curry-making party had gone relatively well, and for a few moments everything seemed back to normal. Then Usagi had called Makoto in tears because once again Mamoru was giving her the "I don't love you stay away from me" line. When Mako had passed this bit of news to the others, Rei was livid.

"What the hell?!" she had raged, her face slowly turning scarlet. "Everything was FINE when we left them. Usagi said she didn't kill anyone or burn down the school, which has got to be considered a victory. She said they even had this whole little hand-holding happy family moment. Everything's great one day, then the next it's not. So what the hell?"

The others were in complete agreement, but patiently weathered Hurricane Rei until she had mostly blown out. By that point Rei had become angry with herself for not taking the opportunity to try and talk with Mamoru when she had the chance. "Stupid me thinking he'd actually be the adult. Usagi's acting with more maturity about all this than Mamoru, and that is something I never thought I'd hear myself say."

"Yeah, this on-again off-again thing has gotta stop," said Mako, her eyebrows furrowed in anger. "If he wants to break it off with Usagi then he can't keep sending her mixed signals. If there's one thing that girl can't resist, it's hope."

Minako looked to Ami. "That's your cue. Where are we at?"

"Tomorrow evening," Ami said decisively. "I've asked Mamoru to drive me to the university library and check out a book for me."

"I'm surprised you don't already have a library card for the university," said Minako.

"Since I was eleven," Ami replied. "But Mamoru doesn't need to know that."

And so Ami was sitting in the passenger seat of Mamoru's red sports car, her hands folded in her lap and her mind desperately trying to find some way to pierce the awkward silence in order to have an even more awkward conversation. They had already visited the library and Ami quickly found a textbook she had read twice. She had been forced to either wave off or ignore the friendly staff that had recognized her as a regular, adding each to a mental list for apologies later on. Mamoru didn't seem to notice, and Ami was glad to not have to fumble for another white lie.

They'd be at Ami's apartment building soon, though, and still she hadn't made any headway.

She understood the logic behind her friends selecting her for this, but Ami questioned the wisdom. Talking from heart was Mako's strength, and Ami couldn't match Rei's intensity or Minako's ideology. Ami had enough trouble starting a phone conversation, and that at least had a specific set of social norms and expectations for each involved party. Three separate occasions she had worked herself up to it, and then closed her mouth just as quickly as it had opened.

Luckily Mamoru seemed content to make the drive in companionable silence, which was something Ami always appreciated where Mamoru was concerned. She dearly loved spending time with her friends, but by the gods they could be draining sometimes.

Ami thought of her friends. Thought of Usagi. Usagi in tears yet again and for no good reason anybody could discern. Ami opened her mouth for a fourth time.

"Mamoru-san?" she began tentatively.

"Mm?" Mamoru flashed Ami a small smile, only taking his eyes off the road for the briefest of glances.

Ami tried to find the right words. The magical word concoction that would reveal the missing link and let everything finally, finally make sense.

Those words failed to come. So instead Ami cut straight to the heart of the matter.

"Usagi."

At the mere mention of her name, Mamoru's grip tightened on the steering wheel and his jaw set. His eyes remained fixed straight ahead and he said nothing.

"What happened?"

Still Mamoru refused to speak. His knuckles began to turn white.

"You two were so happy. Everything was fine, and then suddenly it wasn't. Something had to have triggered this change."

Mamoru offered no explanation; the only indication that he was listening at all was his defensive body language.

"Mamoru-san, please. If you would just talk about whatever happened, I'm sure we can—"

"I don't want to talk about it."

His tone was final, absolute. There was no trace of the warmth Ami knew was in there. She hadn't heard Mamoru sound this cold since ... since he was warning the Sailor Senshi that he would do everything in his power to claim the Rainbow Crystals.

It wasn't a parallel Ami was happy to have made.

"I understand that," she persisted, not unkindly, "but whatever it is, surely it can't be so insurmountable."

Mamoru's voice was so soft, Ami almost didn't hear him. "You can't know that."

"You're right, I don't." Ami looked at Mamoru, her eyes pleading with him to hear her. "But until the evidence proves otherwise, I choose to believe it."

For a moment, just a moment, Ami thought she'd gotten through to him. Then there was a flash behind his eyes, and just like that the gates slammed shut. His expression again became cold and resolute.

"I'm through with this conversation."

"But Mamoru-san—"

"I'm DONE, Ami."

Ami felt her emotions bubble inside her. Anger at his stubbornness and the quiet certainty he was using to justify his actions. Bitter disappointment in him for refusing to fight. She slapped her hands against her upper thighs, the sting complimenting the prickling tears in her eyes. "Usagi is hurting!" she yelled at him.

"So am I!" he yelled back.

That simple confession seemed to have drained Mamoru completely. No amount of begging, pleading or cajoling could get him to say another word. When they arrived at Ami's apartment, Mamoru simply sat staring straight ahead while Ami gathered her things. She thanked him for his help, but there was no response. As soon as she'd exited the car and shut the door, Mamoru peeled away from the curb, the tires squealing on the asphalt and the echo of the powerful motor lingering long after he was out of sight.


	3. Minako Aino, Love Detective

The room's soundtrack was the faint rustling of the breeze, the occasional irritated squawk of a nearby crow, and the constant tapping as Minako drummed the end of her pencil against the table.

Ami had finished telling the others about her discussion with Mamoru the night before. Their disappointment was obvious, and no less than Ami felt herself. Still, she was quick to point out, they had learned something at least: Mamoru's outburst proved there was a definitive reason for the breakup and not simply capriciousness. If there was a cause, Ami posited, then there was a solution.

But first there was school. They had hoped this early meeting would be a celebratory one, where they'd congratulate themselves on a job well done, then Mako and Ami would listen to Usagi babble all day about her reunion with Mamo-chan and they'd all meet up for after-school sundaes and enjoy things being right with the world for five seconds before dealing with whatever the hell was up with Chibi-Usa and those crazy people after her.

Instead they were desperately trying to figure out their next step.

Ami's expression was one of deep concentration; not an unfamiliar sight around their de facto study room. By contrast, Rei was blank, appearing to be in a near meditative trance as she cleared her mind to focus on the problem at hand. Minako was everywhere. Her brow was furrowed and her face scrunched up, as though she could wrest the answer into being by sheer force of will. The pencil increased its tempo.

So too did Mako's shiny new facial tick. At each clack of the pencil impacting with the table surface, Mako's eye would twitch. Every so often it would seem that Minako had finally relented in this hellish torture, and then she would start up again. After the fourth round of stop-and-start, Mako's hand lashed out lightning fast, snatched Minako's pencil from her still-tapping hand, and effortlessly snapped it between her fingers.

Minako was devastated. "That was my favourite pencil!"

Looking at the halves in her hand, Mako shrugged. "Now you have two."

She extended the pieces to Minako, who snatched them away and clutched them possessively to her chest.

"You could've asked me to stop!"

"Stop," Mako said, unconcerned that stopping had already occurred.

Ami was steadfastly ignoring this latest unfolding drama. "I just can't fathom what's caused this. It could be almost anything."

"Maybe it's an age thing?" Rei suggested. "Four years won't mean a lot later, but right now ..."

Minako stared at the two pieces of her pencil with impossibly large, shimmering blue eyes. Her lower lip trembled.

"It wasn't a problem before," said Ami.

Rei smirked. "Maybe Usagi's dad tracked him down."

Minako repeatedly pressed the halves of her pencil together, as though they would magically rejoin and again become whole. Each time this failed to happen, her grief began anew.

"Maybe it's another woman."

A gasp ran through the other girls. The pencil pieces slipped through Minako's numb fingers and clattered to the table. Three pairs of eyes fixed on Makoto with horror, and she flushed under the sudden attention.

"Mamoru-san would never do something like that!" Ami exclaimed, scandalized.

"Trust me, that guy has had eyes only for Usagi from the second he knew who he was," said Rei.

Mako quickly backpedaled. "Yeah, no, sure that can't be it. I was just thinking out loud. You know me, never a good idea. Forget I said it."

But Minako couldn't forget that Mako said it.

Mamoru.

Another woman.

Cheating on Usagi.

It couldn't be true.

And yet.

And yet.

Could they be sure?

Shouldn't they BE sure?

Killing a bird was worth two in the bush after all.

They had to be sure.

Minako leapt to her feet. Her friends noted the glint in her eyes, and in that bone-chilling instant, all knew true fear.

"I'll get to the bottom of this!" Minako declared as she thrust her finger toward the heavens. "Minako Aino, Love Detective, is on the case!"

Without another word, Minako turned and ran toward the shrine steps.

Ami watched Minako's retreating back with mounting horror. "Minako-chan! School!"

"I apologize to everybody in the entire world for today," said Mako.

Rei contented herself with driving her forehead repeatedly into the table.

**... ... ...**

So far the morning was uneventful, which suited Artemis just fine. Every day he diligently went through the same routine: checking in with the local stray scene for the latest buzz, making sure all the buildings were where they were supposed to be, being instantly suspicious of any new businesses that opened in the area, and poking around the best seafood places in town for loose inventory that a smart, quick, handsome feline could take advantage of.

He turned down the street on his way to a cluster of garbage cans that he knew to be a popular gossiping spot for a trio of loose-lipped tabbies. Yes, it was a tough job, but somecat had to do it.

All this was, of course, after seeing his charge safely off to school. Couldn't leave that girl to her own devices, no sir. If Artemis wasn't there to keep an eye on Minako, she'd probably cut school to sit on a bench wearing a beige trench coat and matching fedora while staring at an apartment building from over the top of a newspaper she was unconvincingly pretending to read.

Wait, what?

"Minako!" Artemis exclaimed, temporarily forgetting that, to society at large, cats did not possess a vocabulary much beyond "meow".

"Shhh!" hissed Minako, not looking at him. "I'm undercover."

Her eyes never left the building across the street. Mamoru's apartment building. Artemis really did not want to know what was going on here. He landed on the bench next to her to find out.

"You're supposed to be at school," he whispered at her. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm on a case!" she told him.

"You ARE a case," he muttered.

Eyes still glued across the street, Minako reached out and flicked Artemis' ear with deadly precision. He growled and batted at her hand, but she was too quick for him. Artemis wasn't concerned; he knew where she slept. Revenge would be his, oh yes.

Her focus remained absolute, but Minako filled Artemis in. "You know about the whole Usagi/Mamoru mess, right?"

"Kinda hard to miss." Usagi was doing no small amount of crying to Luna, and where did Luna go to unload? Artemis would be glad when this whole thing was sorted and they could just get back to saving the world. He shook his head. Humans. What could you do?

"So we're all trying to figure out what Mamoru's deal is when I thought— Actually Mako-chan brought it up but whatever ... What if Mamoru is CHEATING ON USAGI?"

For the first time, Minako turned the full force of her gaze to Artemis. Her eyes were wide in a "have you ever heard anything so shocking in your ENTIRE LIFE" expression.

Artemis only blinked. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."

Clearly his lack of reaction was a bitter disappointment.

"Their love survived DEATH, Minako. TWICE. I don't know what's going on, but I'm sure it's not that."

Minako could not be convinced. "But we don't KNOW. Aren't you the one who told me that until we rule it out, anything is a possibility?"

"Oh so NOW you're listening to me?"

"We have to find out for sure!" she said, not listening to him. "I'll track his every movement, all day and all night if I have to! I'll follow wherever he goes! Minako Aino, Love Detective, will get to the heart of this matter!"

"Not by sitting here, you won't," Artemis said, extending a paw to follow the pink-shirted man driving a motorcycle down the street.

Instantly Minako was on her feet. "Get back here, I wasn't ready!" she screamed in the direction Mamoru had taken. Pedestrians shot her weird glances and crossed the street to avoid walking past her. A stream of expletives burst from Minako's delicate mouth and she stomped her foot. A child pointed out the funny lady to his mother and was quickly dragged away.

The anger burned out as soon as it arrived however, and Minako gave a heavy sigh. "Now what?" she asked herself.

Artemis shook his head. Partners meant partners, after all. "He's probably on his way to class. He has a bio-chemistry lecture at 9:30."

Minako sharply turned her head toward the cat. "How do you know?"

"We meet for coffee sometimes." At her puzzled look, Artemis rolled his eyes. "We're the only two guys, you think we don't hang out?"

A dazzling smile broke across Minako's features. "Fuzzy, you just got a thousand times more useful today," she said, scooping him up and depositing him on her shoulder.

"Yay me?" Artemis said as Minako jogged toward the nearest bus stop.

******... ... ...**

"College is boooooring," Minako declared with all the gravity afforded by her thirty minutes experience of sitting in a shady spot on campus. Artemis' twitching ears indicated he heard her, but made the decision to continue feigning sleep. It had taken some time to find the building where Mamoru was most likely attending his lecture, and between the early hour and the fact that class was in session, the number of cute guys milling about was depressingly low as far as Minako was concerned. Also her butt was beginning to fall asleep.

She was about to complain again when the doors burst open, and a steady stream of students began to pour out. Minako scrambled to her feet, grabbed Artemis by the scruff of his neck (a gesture he did not at all appreciate and was not shy in conveying), and hid behind a nearby tree to watch. She made sure her trench coat collar was turned up and fedora rim was pulled down. Appearances were important.

It didn't take long to single out Mamoru, his pink shirt flashing like a homing beacon made of salmon. Minako allowed herself a predatory "gotcha" smile, which froze as she saw him talking to a woman. A really beautiful woman. A really beautiful woman who laughed and touched his arm and was 100% undeniably not Usagi.

"Oh he is dead," Minako growled, her fingers curling into the bark of the tree she was hiding behind. "He is dead and she is dead. Everybody is SO DEAD."

Artemis gave her a nervous sideways glance. "Minako, we don't know what—"

"Follow him," she ordered, not letting him finish. "But don't engage. Just watch. I want to know where he goes and who he talks to. Where there's one floozy there could be a whole floozy platoon."

"Floozy? Seriously? That's the word we're using? Look, she could just be a—"

"ARTEMIS."

"Fine, fine," he said with a sigh, leaping from her shoulder to land gracefully on the ground. "Use the communicator if you need me." As Mamoru and the girl parted in opposite directions, Artemis silently padded after his target.

Narrowed eyes followed the floozy in question until she was a safe distance ahead, then Minako slid out from behind her cover and followed. Her glare never left the back of the woman's skull.

******... ... ...**

Aya Mutsu settled at her usual table with her usual tea and began her usual routine of reading over the morning's lecture notes. She had an hour before her next class; not long enough to make it worthwhile to leave campus. Lately she had found much more compelling reasons to stick around anyway. She smiled at the thought and glanced about hopefully, but didn't see who she was looking for. Just a few other students, some walking casually, some running with the kind of panic only the perpetually tardy could achieve. Then an odd feeling itched at the nape of her neck, like she was being watched. She turned and thought she caught a flash of blonde hair out of the corner of her eye, but there didn't appear to be anyone there now and she quickly dismissed it.

Aya lifted the cup to her lips and closed her eyes. She inhaled deeply, luxuriating in the spiced fragrance, then blew softly to help it cool. She was about to take a sip when she had that feeling again, that tingle marching up her spine. She cracked open an eye.

And couldn't keep down a scream at the face peering back her, mere inches away. The tea sloshed over the sides of the cup, splashing on the table and thankfully avoiding her hand.

"Who are you?" the face demanded.

"Who am *I*?" Aya repeated, setting the cup down before her trembling hand could spill any more. "Who are YOU?"

"Minako Aino, Love Detective," Minako said casually, her hand waving away this insignificant detail. "Who are YOU?"

"I'm ... Aya?" said Aya, so far out of her depth that she genuinely wasn't sure if that was the right answer or not. Minako still loomed only a few inches away and somewhere in the back of Aya's mind she couldn't help lamenting that this was very much NOT her usual routine.

Minako gave a derisive snort. "'Aya', is that what they're calling it now?"

"What?"

"I'll ask the questions!" Minako exclaimed. She slammed her hands on the table and more tea went flying. Aya watched it sadly; she had been really looking forward to that tea. "Who are you to Mamoru Chiba?"

The question seemed so random that Aya wasn't sure she'd heard correctly and she shook her head in confusion.

"Mamoru Chiba! Tall guy, dark hair, terrible clothes. I saw you, all giggly and flirty. Don't deny it!"

By now the initial shock was beginning to wear away, and irritation was slowly taking its place. Aya leveled a glare at Minako. "Are you a stalker? Because I hate to tell you this but he has a girlfriend."

Minako was about to agree on this very excellent point when her interrogation was interrupted by a third party. "Everything okay, Aya-chan?"

Glancing up, Minako took in the newcomer. Another gorgeous woman (honestly, where were all the college hunks today? a part of Minako's mind wondered) stared back at her, not openly hostile but halfway there. She placed a protective hand on Aya's shoulder.

For Aya's part, she seemed both thrilled and relieved to see the other woman. She covered the hand on her shoulder with her own and gave it a squeeze. "Sora, meet Chiba's stalker," she introduced with a flourish. "Chiba's stalker, this is Sora."

Sora's eyebrow quirked upward. "Chiba-your-lab-partner Chiba?" Aya nodded, and Sora gave Minako a quick and dubious appraisal. "Likes 'em young, doesn't he," she said under her breath and Aya chuckled.

Minako was about to protest that she wasn't stalking anyone ... or at least not Mamoru ... or at least not like THAT ... when suddenly everything seemed to click into place.

"Lab partner." She said it as a flat statement, but Aya still responded with a series of quick "well duh" nods.

Then Minako looked at Sora. Looked at Sora's hand on Aya's shoulder. Looked at Aya's hand on Sora's hand. Looked at Aya. Looked at Sora again.

A lecherous grin oozed over Minako's features. She raised both hands, pointing a finger at each woman. They were both staring at Minako now, their certainty that this girl was supremely insane evident on both of their faces. Minako continued to grin as a few throaty giggles escaped.

Then suddenly she was in motion. "Thanks, bye now!" she exclaimed, running in the opposite direction at top speed. Within seconds, she was out of sight.

Aya and Sora continued to stare after her for several moments.

"I think I should get a new lab partner," Aya said.

Sora nodded in wholehearted agreement.

******... ... ...**

By the time the other Senshi found Minako, it was clear she'd had a harrowing day. Her eyes were red and dry from excessive amounts of diligent staring, and her trench coat hung limply around her body. It also had a few mysterious stains which the girls seem to collectively agree to never ask about. For all this though, she remained vigilant and determined as she watched Mamoru in the cafe quietly drinking coffee and reading a newspaper.

"Hey there, Minako-chan," Mako tentatively broached.

"Hey," replied Minako, clearly distracted.

Ami fidgeted uncomfortably, averting her eyes from Mamoru as though to look in that direction would be the height of rudeness. "Artemis told us where to find you."

"He said it's been all day," Rei added, clearly not sharing Ami's reservations and openly peering at Mamoru to see if there was anything interesting.

There wasn't.

"Pretty much," Minako said.

"Get anything?"

"Well I got called a few new and interesting things. But on Mamoru? Not a thing." She sighed and looked away, rubbing the bridge of her nose wearily. "Seriously, he may be the most boring adult male on the entire planet."

Mako frowned at the disappointment in Minako's voice. "But that's good, right?"

"Yeah I guess," said Minako. "I just really thought we were on to something. But all day, he barely said two words, and most of those were only for people directly involved in school or his job. If Mamoru's cheating on Usagi, I just don't see him casually picking someone to do it. It'd have to be someone he already knows."

Minako glanced at the others to see if they were all on the same page. Mako and Ami nodded readily. Then she turned to Rei.

Rei, who was still watching Mamoru from across the street.

Instantly Minako's eyes narrowed to slits.

"Someone he already has a history with."

Mako and Ami exchanged a worried look.

"Yeah," Rei agreed, glancing at Minako. "But who—"

"SOMEONE LIKE YOU, REI HINO."

Rei screeched a few inarticulate sounds and stumbled backward, desperate to get away from Minako's accusing face that was suddenly less than a centimeter from her nose. "W-What?" she stammered.

"YOU, who dated Mamoru for months before Usagi stole him away! YOU, who still carry a torch for your first and greatest love! YOU who ... who would seduce him with your ... seducey seduction skills like ... because your hair is REALLY NICE."

The two stood frozen for a moment, Minako with her face full of accusation, Rei with a flat, piercing glare.

Then Rei whipped the fedora from Minako's head, slapped her with it three times, and shoved it directly onto her face. Minako's cry of protest was shrill but muffled.

"I'm leaving now," Rei announced to Mako and Ami, then turned and marched away without another word.

"Wait, Rei-chan!" called Ami, running after her friend. "Minako didn't mean it!"

Mako watched them go, then pulled the fedora free as Minako was vainly scrabbling to remove it. She shoved the hat back on Minako's head. "Smooth," she complimented.

Grumbling under her breath, Minako set to work adjusting the hat to the perfect angle.

"Rei's over Mamoru, you know that, right? Been over. Done."

"I know," Minako grudgingly admitted. Then she brightened. "You have to admit it's fun to get her going though."

Mako chuckled and shook her head. "You do like to live dangerously, girl."

"Sailor V can't live any other way!" Minako said, flashing her trademark victory salute. "Honestly though," she continued, "if Rei didn't make it so easy I wouldn't ..."

She trailed off, and Mako turned to her with concern. "Minako-chan?"

"Easy," repeated Minako, sounding distant. Then she looked at Mako with a grin near wide enough to split her face. "I've got it! I know how we can settle this for good!"

******... ... ...**

Minako had only been waiting for about ten minutes before she saw Mamoru approaching his apartment complex. She'd managed to time it just about perfectly. It hadn't been easy; once she'd heard the plan, Makoto had swiftly backed out and disavowed all knowledge, so Minako had been left to take care of everything herself. Hrmph. Some friend Mako was. The next time she approached Minako with some hair-brained scheme, well ... well Minako would be right there in the thick of it because if there was one thing Minako LOVED it was hair-brained schemes. But she'd be sure to bring this up, you bet.

There was only a few moments left before Mamoru would round the corner, and Minako took the opportunity to run a final mental checklist before take-off.

CHECK: One devilishly short low-cut dress that her father absolutely did not she owned.

CHECK: One pair of ridiculously high heeled shoes that Rei absolutely did not know Minako was borrowing on an extended loan program.

CHECK: One brunette wig that Minako absolutely would not admit to wearing when she was pretending she was a famous idol singer who was pretending she was somebody else so she could go out and not be mobbed by fans.

She heard footsteps approaching. It was show time.

Minako stepped out in front of Mamoru just as he was rounding the corner, and the two of them collided in a jumble of limbs and apologies. It probably would've only taken moments to extricate themselves and be on their way, but Minako made a big show of getting her hair caught on Mamoru's jacket, and the trap was sprung. Now Mamoru was stuck in an awkward conversation, and Minako slowly closed in.

"I'm so sorry," Mamoru said for the fifth time.

"No, please, don't worry about it," 'Minako' assured him. "It's my fault. I'm just such a klutz!" She batted him on the arm and laughed airily, risking a quick glance to make sure her dress was in fact as low-cut as she hoped.

Yes. Yes it was.

Mamoru didn't seem to notice however. He gave her a curt, polite nod, and headed toward the building entrance.

Minako was caught by surprise, and she quickly made a grab after him. Her ankle nearly turned in the shoe, and she wondered not for the first time how the hell Mars did it. "Wait! Wait, I, uhh ... " She thought fast. "I'm kinda new in town. I was hoping maybe someone could show me around this beautiful city of yours."

"You're not Japanese?" Mamoru asked a note of disbelief in his voice.

"[British, actually. My company just transferred me to Tokyo.]" Minako's English was accented and perfect. Inside, she patted herself on the back.

Mamoru appeared similarly impressed. "[Oh? Your Japanese is very good. What do you do?]"

Crap, she hadn't thought it through that far. "Hair," she said in Japanese, blurting out the first thing to come to mind. Hair? Sigh.

"How ... interesting," said Mamoru, giving her an odd smile. "Anyway, thank you for the offer, but I'm afraid I really need to be going. Good luck with your ... hair."

Minako made a final desperate bid. She clung to his arm, pressed against it, curled around it. "But it's such a lovely night. Are you sure you don't want some company?" she asked in a breathy voice laden with suggestion.

He favoured her with a kind smile, but pulled his arm free. "I'm sure," he said, and stepped away. He bowed slightly, wished her goodnight, and headed toward his building entrance.

Minako turned and walked in the opposite direction, smiling to herself. She did it! Mamoru hadn't been interested in her at all! She had been completely and utterly rejected! That was just ... that was ...

Scowling, Minako began to stomp home. Again her ankle turned. She ripped off the shoes and flung them into a nearby bush.


	4. TLC - Truth, Lectures, Cooking

It was entirely possible that this onion was the greatest, most spectacular incarnation of all onionkind the world had ever and would ever see. If so, it was a declaration left to Makoto Kino, sole arbiter of all onion perfection.

Or so it might have seemed to the casual observer, given that Mako had been intently staring at the same onion for several minutes now. The onion, of course, was the furthest thing from her mind. All of Mako's thoughts were devoted to one thing: Usagi. She was getting so THIN.

Not literally, of course. When Usagi was upset she turned to the gentle, understanding embrace of food, and Usagi had been upset A LOT lately.

But emotionally, the girl was as thin as rice paper. Just that afternoon there had been an algebra question framed around a men's formalwear store, and Usagi had lost it, sitting in the middle of class and bawling like a newborn. Makoto had stammered an apology and dragged Usagi to the girl's bathroom, unable to do anything but listen and wipe her nose and hug her. All of this was making Mako feel so damn useless.

Mako HATED feeling useless.

She blinked and came back to herself. The greatest, most spectacular incarnation of all onionkind had disappeared inside Makoto's clenched fist. She gingerly opened it and beheld the sloppiest, most mangled corpse of all onionkind.

Sighing, she grabbed a plastic bag, scraped the remains inside, and deposited the mess into her basket. You broke it, you bought it. Maybe she could salvage the remains for the stew.

The Senshi had, for the moment, come up against a brick wall. Minako reported back – rather grouchily actually – that they could rule out Mamoru cheating on Usagi, which was fantastic news but put them back at square one. It was making her crazy.

Nobody really got how important it was to Mako that Usagi and Mamoru resolve this whatever-this-was. It was important to all of them, sure – when Usagi ain't happy ain't nobody happy – but for Mako it ran so much deeper. Usagi and Mamoru were her romantic ideal. All the horrors they'd been through, all the tears and violence and separation, and yet still they always found each other. Mako needed to believe that kind of love existed in the world, and with Usagi and Mamoru, she had her undeniable proof.

If only Mamoru would quit being such a fucking GUY about everything.

Suddenly, cooking was all she wanted to be doing. She wanted to retreat to a world where she had a plan, knew how to execute it, and could create something beautiful from chaos. Without wasting another second, Mako expertly navigated the produce section. She filled her basket with the choicest selections then marched determinedly to the checkout counters.

Something caused her to stop in her tracks. Curiously, Mako retreated a few steps and leaned backward to peer down an aisle.

There was Mamoru, a basket with a few items at his feet. He was in front of the instant noodle display, holding aloft a package and intently inspecting it. He seemed less than impressed with what he saw but still opened his hand, and the package tumbled from his grasp and into the basket below. Without much enthusiasm, he grabbed the basket handles with the same hand and continued down the aisle.

Something about how he was holding himself set off a warning bell in Mako's brain, but it was drowned out by the cacophony of alarms at the sight of all the crap in his shopping basket. Within a few strides, Makoto had caught up to him.

"You're not really going to eat that stuff, are you?" she asked, her sudden appearance making him jump. "Re-tile your bathroom, sure, but eat it?"

Mamoru recovered quickly. "It gets the job done. That's good enough."

"It's not good enough for a starving dog," Mako said with disgust.

He smirked a little at that. "It's the best I can manage at the moment, but I'll bear that in mind for the future."

That warning bell went off again, and Mako took in Mamoru's somewhat pained posture and the right arm dangling limp and useless at his side. "Mamoru-san, you're hurt!"

She reached out a hand to his wounded arm, and he twisted slightly to avoid the contact. "Just some bruising. It'll be fine in a day or two." He flashed her a tight smile. "We heal fast."

Which was true, but Mako happened to know from a distressing amount of personal experience that they healed BETTER with good home-cooked meals. A decision was reached. "I'm making you dinner tonight."

"What?"

"I'm making you dinner tonight," she repeated. "A quick stew. It's really good," she assured him.

Mamoru shook his head. "That's very kind of you, but I can't—"

"You can. You will. Hey, look, you ARE." She plucked the basket from his hand and set it down on the floor with no small amount of disdain.

"Makoto, I—"

"Am. Making. You. Dinner." Mako said again, slowly but firmly. She turned and strode purposefully toward the cashiers, not bothering to look back at Mamoru, simply assuming he would follow.

He did.

**... ... ...**

The market wasn't far from Mamoru's apartment, and they walked in silence. Mako easily handled the bags of groceries. She allowed Mamoru to carry one bag containing a lone tomato. If that damaged his ego in any way, he didn't show it. He had, at least, convinced Mako to let him pay.

Soon they were entering Mamoru's apartment. Mako had been here a couple of times before, and as always it struck her how impersonal the place was. Clean, tidy, efficient, and sterile. There were few decorations on the walls, and aside from a couple of textbooks, very little in the way of personal affects. It could very literally be the home of absolutely anyone.

"You need a plant," Mako decided.

"A what?"

"A plant. There's nothing living here. A plant would help."

She took the bag from his hand and went into the kitchen. Mamoru followed and stood in the doorway as Mako began to poke through the cabinets, pulling out pots and utensils as she found them. She hadn't bothered to ask permission, and he didn't try to stop her.

"I had some roses," he offered.

Mako smiled as she sifted through a drawer. "A man with a theme, I like it."

"They died."

She looked at him sharply to see if he was joking. He wasn't. She winced painfully. "See now that is just depressing as hell."

It wasn't long before Mako had set up the kitchen and its tools to her standards and a delicious-smelling broth was simmering on the stove top. Mamoru continued to watch without comment. All conversation, it seemed, would be down to Makoto.

She emptied the grocery bags and began to wash the vegetables. "So, how did you get hurt?"

Mamoru shrugged, an odd lop-sided gesture given his injury. "It was one of those sisters. The one in purple. What's her name?"

"No idea," snarled Mako. "They're all named 'dead' if they don't leave us alone."

That caused a real chuckle in Mamoru, and he seemed to relax a little. He rested his good shoulder against the door frame and continued. "Whoever she is, I saw her sneaking around. She was a little too closer to Usa— Chibi-Usa's house, so I led her away. She got in a lucky hit."

"Chibi-Usa's house, huh?" Mako shot Mamoru a knowing grin, which he completely ignored, and returned her attention to the chopping board.

"What about you?" Mamoru asked. Mako looked up and Mamoru indicated a spot on his cheek where Mako had a corresponding cut.

Mako grunted. "Souvenir from the fight at the construction site. Nothing major. Like you said, we heal fast." She paused before adding, "From most things, anyway."

In an instant, Mamoru was no longer relaxed, and Makoto figured now was as good a time as any.

"So about Usagi ..."

"I don't want to talk about it," he said with a note of finality in his voice.

"That's fine," said Mako, not really caring. "You can listen."

But instead of talking, Mako added the vegetables to the broth and started browning the meat. Silence reigned for a few moments more, then she began to speak.

"I don't know what's gong on with you," she said calmly and with no trace of accusation. Her gaze remained on the dinner preparations. "I'm sure you have reasons and maybe they're good ones. Maybe psychological or whatever. I don't care about that. That stuff's for smart people like you and Ami. It could be the most logical sensible reason in the entire world, and I just don't give a fuck about any of it."

Mako stirred the vegetables and adjusted the heat. Mamoru continued to stand straight and tall in the doorway, his expression unreadable.

"What I care about is Usagi. Usagi, Ami, Minako, Rei, Luna and Artemis ... I couldn't love them more. They're my family. I would do anything to protect my family." She tossed a knowing glance at Mamoru. "I'm gonna guess you get that. That's why it makes me crazy when we hurt each other. All this stuff we don't say, all the feelings we hide. None of that makes any sense to me. But I know some people can't help it, so I try to let it go."

Mako whisked some flour into the vegetable mixture, then faced Mamoru directly. He still hadn't moved. "Then I'm watching Usagi die a little more each day, and know that I can't do a damn thing, and I know that you CAN, but you're too busy doing whatever the hell this is. That would be bad enough, but you're trying to have it all. You say you don't love her anymore, but you don't let her go. You say you don't want to see her anymore, but you keep showing up. It's like you're afraid to commit to either having her or pushing her away. I never had you pegged as a coward, Mamoru."

The pain that flashed across Mamoru's face went unnoticed as Makoto was adding the meat to the vegetables, completing the dish. "If you still love Usagi, and I believe that you do, then you can't let it keep going like this. She deserves better than that, and so do you."

Decisively, Mako clicked off the stove top and removed the pot from the burner.

"Now come eat your dinner before it gets cold."

**... ... ...**

Mamoru was seated at his small table. The textbooks and notes were temporarily shoved to a far corner. Makoto emerged from the kitchen with a steaming bowl of rice and stew and set it down in front of Mamoru. He was unable to keep his stomach from growling loudly as the rich, savory aroma hit him.

Mako chuckled at the noise. "Taste that and tell me again how instant ramen is 'good enough'."

Grabbing a huge spoonful, Mamoru hungrily shoved it into his mouth. His eyes immediately lit up and he made muffled sounds of enthusiastic approval.

"Toldja," Mako said with a proud wink. She grabbed her jacket from the back of a nearby chair and began to slip it on.

Mamoru quickly finished chewing and swallowed. "You're leaving?"

"Yeah," she said, gathering the rest of her things. "I made myself a little to-go box – I'll get your container back to you later – and you should have plenty of leftovers to see you through until your arm's better."

Mamoru looked like he was about to say something, but Mako was already opening the door. "That's about all I can do," she said, looking back at him with a sad but hopeful smile. "The rest is up to you."

Makoto closed the door, leaving Mamoru alone in his empty apartment.


	5. Rei's Turn

Rei was waiting at the Crown Arcade, tapping her foot impatiently. She was sitting at a game machine with a prime view of the entrance. She didn't know which game she was blocking and she didn't care. A few people had asked if she was going to play and were planning to ask her to move if not. The request died on their lips as they received the full force of her glare. They all but ran to go play something – anything – else.

Mamoru was running late, and his tardiness was doing nothing to improve her mood. She knew Mamoru would be there soon because Motoki had asked him to stop by. Motoki had done this at Rei's request. This request was made by Rei marching into the Crown, grabbing the phone from behind the counter, dialing Mamoru's number and shoving the receiver into Motoki's hand.

Rei had reached the end of her patience, and as far as she was concerned, she had been a saint to allow it to take this long. Ami, Minako and Makoto had each had a shot at ending this, and now it was her turn. She was through with Mamoru and his stupid games. She'd had enough of Usagi constantly on the verge of tears, and of the broken look in Usagi's eyes whenever she thought no one was watching.

Rei wanted answers, and she would get them today.

The entrance doors parted, and Mamoru walked in.

Rei stood up. Instantly she had caught Mamoru's eye.

The entrance doors parted, and Mamoru walked out.


	6. Breaking Point

Someone was pounding on the front door hard enough to rattle it in the frame. It was a great credit to the door that hadn't yet splintered inward.

"Mamoru! Open up!"

"Please, Mamoru-san! We just want to talk!"

"Maybe YOU just want to talk."

"We already discussed this – violence will solve nothing!"

"Well non-violence hasn't exactly been working out for us now has it?"

"Mamoru!" Another thud on the door. "I know you're in there!"

"She means that literally! Sensing people is kinda her thing!"

"This situation is becoming untenable, we MUST speak with you!"

"You know this is only the 12th floor. If we get to the roof I can probably hook up a Love-Me Chain and we can scale down to the balcony."

Again a fist impacted with the door. "Mamoru!"

"But we'd have to be sure which balcony was his, because if we got it wrong? Wow, SO embarrassing."

"If this door isn't open in five seconds I swear I will BURN IT DOWN."

"Mamoru, open the fucking—"

The door swung wide, and the four Senshi gaped at the man standing before them.

Mamoru looked defeated. His shoulders were slumped, as though they'd become too heavy to hold straight. His eyes were red-rimmed and weary and refused to directly meet anyone's gaze. He was truly miserable, pitiable.

The fist impacted Mamoru's jaw with a satisfyingly sharp, thick cracking sound. He stumbled backward and fell to one knee. Mako loomed over him, her emotions so high and her muscles so taut she was quivering. Ami was desperately tugging on Mako's arm, trying in vain to lower it, and pleading with the taller girl to be calm. Minako and Rei were similarly calling on Mako to back down, though perhaps without quite the same level of dedication.

Mako ignored them all. Her eyes were locked on Mamoru with smoldering rage. "Get up," she growled.

For the first time, Mamoru looked someone in the eye. His expression became its default cool and unreadable, and he got to his feet with something not quite pride but related to it. An ugly bruise was already forming and it looked terribly painful. Mamoru didn't seem to notice it as he faced Mako, unflinching.

Again Mako cocked her fist, ready to deliver another blow; Mamoru made no effort to block or avoid the attack. Mako let her arm fly – then noticed too late that Ami had put herself directly in its path.

Mako's reflexes were good, even outside of her Senshi form, but that good? Her expression became one of horror as she tried to stop, and in the same heartbeat was sure she couldn't. But at the last possible moment she was able to pull back and readjust, and her fist whooshed harmlessly past Ami's face, doing little more than causing her blue hair to rustle slightly in its wake.

Ami was wincing, bracing herself for the blow. When it never came, she tentatively risked a peek. Mako was staring at Ami in dismay, her eyes wide and filling with tears. In response, Ami gave her a gentle smile. She took Mako's fist, still hovering where it had finally come to a mercifully impact-free stop, and this time she easily lowered it. Ami patted Mako's hand reassuringly and said, "Let's try again, hm?"

Swallowing hard, Mako nodded. Her anger was forgotten, for the moment at least.

The same could not be said for Rei. "Usagi nearly died tonight!" she yelled at Mamoru, noting his flinch but not caring. "She was fading away right in front of us and WE COULDN'T DO ANYTHING. All because of YOU."

"I came as soon as I knew," Mamoru said. His voice was level but his eyes were angry. "I didn't mean for that to happen."

Rei drew in breath for a retort, but Minako cut her off. "We're grateful you saved her." A humourless laugh escaped. "You have no idea how grateful. But things should never have gotten to this point. It's getting pretty ridiculous now, don't you think?"

"Beyond ridiculous!" Rei vehemently agreed. "One second you're all life-saving kisses and telling her she's magnificent, and the next it's 'I don't love you' and crushed roses. Crushed roses!" She threw her arms wide and turned to the others as if to say "I am done with this, someone else make sense of it".

Ami shot Mamoru a disapproving look. "That WAS needlessly melodramatic."

"I was in the moment," Mamoru muttered, but he at least had the good graces to look abashed.

"If you don't want to be with Usagi anymore, then fine. I don't get it, but fine." Minako was still firmly in business mode, and she was keeping her tone as accusation-free as possible. "But she is still completely in love with you and she can't accept that what you had is over without knowing why."

The shock from earlier had worn off, and Mako and found her voice again. "Which means," she said, still furious but in control, "that shit like this might keep happening."

"And that's not acceptable," added Ami.

Minako nodded firmly in complete agreement. She crossed her arms and pinned Mamoru with a hard stare. "That's why we're here. If you can't tell Usagi, then at least tell US and let us handle her."

It looked for a moment like Mamoru would relent. He opened his mouth to speak, but gasped instead, as though someone had just thrown a bucket of ice water over him.

In the same instant, unnoticed, Rei also gasped. There had been ... something. She wasn't sure what, but there was definitely something. Her eyes darted around the room, unobserved details suddenly coming into sharp relief. The pain in Mamoru's eyes whenever someone mentioned Usagi's name. His panic earlier that night – a panic Rei understood only too well – as he had been unable to wake Sailor Moon. The picture near his bed, of himself and Usagi in happier times. Why did he still have that? Was the glass cracked? And why did—

Rei gasped again as, for just a moment, it seemed as though the Usagi in the photograph had slumped forward. Dying. Dead.

She shook her head to clear it, and realized that things were once more escalating quickly. Mamoru had again slipped behind his walls, and his stubborn lack of answers was like massaging everyone's frayed and exposed nerves with a nail file. Mako hadn't taken another swing at him, thanks in no small part to Ami's steadfast refusal to get out of the way, but it wouldn't be long before Mako just picked the smaller girl up and physically moved her clear, and from the look on Minako's face, she was as likely to join Mako as stop her.

Which all sounded beautifully cathartic to Rei. But now she was getting some sense of the larger picture, albeit infuriatingly piecemeal, she felt confident that every time Mamoru dug in his heels he was only strengthening his resolve; Mako could pound Mamoru into a bloody smear, and still that smear would be steadfast and silent.

Rei felt a twinge of admiration for that.

By the gods, it was pissing her off though.

Still, what they needed was more information, and finally Rei had an idea about getting it which didn't require Mamoru in the slightest. "Let's just go," she said, her clear voice cutting through the room.

The others, Mamoru included, looked at her with surprise.

"This isn't getting us anywhere, and I doubt that killing each other will do much for Usagi's state of mind."

Rei moved next to Ami, between Mako and Minako, and turned her back to Mamoru. "I've got an idea," she whispered, then louder, "It's not like we can't come back and burn his apartment down around his ears later." She shot him a sweet smile over her shoulder. "You know, if we must."

Still confused, but not questioning it, the others allowed Rei to herd them toward the door. Ami opened it and went through first, followed by Mako who was being pushed by Rei. Last was Minako, who gave Mamoru a final hard look filled with unspoken promises, and then she too was gone.


	7. Now You Understand

_Church bells rang out joyously, announcing to the world the union of the happy couple. Surrounded by cheering friends and family, Mamoru Chiba and Usagi Tsukino walked under a shower of rice and rose petals._

_Mamoru gazed at his new bride, his love for her etched into every feature. She had never looked more beautiful than in this moment._

_Usagi blushed under the intensity of his gaze and ducked her head demurely. "We're finally married, aren't we?" she said with wonder, as if she still couldn't believe it was true._

_"I'll never let you go," Rei promised, reverently brushing Usagi's cheek._

_"Rei-chan," Usagi whispered. Her eyes slipped closed, and she leaned forward._

_"Usako," responded Mamoru, closing the remaining distance._

_In the instant before their lips met, the world exploded. Usagi was ripped, screaming, from Rei's arms. Rei cried out in terror and helplessly reached for Usagi. She felt her heart seize as ice water was injected into her veins._

_"Mamoru Chiba," a male's voice said, echoing from everywhere and nowhere. _

_Mamoru whirled around, seeing nothing in the void but devastation. "Who are you?!" he bellowed, equal parts demanding and pleading._

_"You must not get close to Usagi Tsukino," a woman's voice continued, frustratingly calm and maddeningly familiar._

_"Night after night you make me live this!" Rei yelled, desperate to fight but unable to find any enemies. "Why?!"_

_As if in answer, Usagi appeared again, tears welling in her eyes._

_"When the two of you are bound together ..." the woman said._

_"...the world will crumble," the man completed. "Usagi Tsukino – Princess Serenity ..."_

_Usagi changed, her wedding dress becoming one far more ancient and familiar. She looked at her love, and the worst part was how clearly, even now, she still had every faith that she would be saved._

_"...will die."_

_The woman's voice, flat and emotionless, was in stark contrast to Rei's screams. The ground beneath Usagi began to shred apart. Vicious dagger-like shards flew into the air, effortlessly carving through flesh and bone until there was nothing left of Usagi but a few stained and tattered strips of white fabric._

_"This is the truth from which you cannot escape."_

**... ... ...**

Rei gasped and sat bolt upright.

Instinctively, her hand fled to her chest, fighting to ease the racing of her heart. She took one deep breath, and then another, struggling to calm herself and regain control. It took several minutes – several more than Rei would've liked, and there were a few moments where she genuinely thought she was having a heart attack. But eventually her pulse slowed, and she was able to think again.

She brushed back her sweat-soaked bangs and warily glanced at the sacred fire. Aside from the occasional pop of a log splitting, it was now silent; the flames that danced within revealed no more secrets.

That was okay. The ones Rei had received were enough to give her nightmares for weeks.

.

* * *

.

The next morning, Rei was once again at Mamoru's doorstep. It was likely much earlier than was considered polite, but Rei hadn't been able to get any sleep, and she had a feeling she wasn't alone in that.

The fire had been reluctant to tell what it knew, but Rei was relentless. Every night found her kneeling before the flames, deep in meditation and seeking answers. There she would stay, near motionless for hours, until fatigue would finally overtake her and she was forced to abandon her search for a time. A few hours sleep, then school, and then back to the flames as soon as possible. Concerned, the others had tried to convince her to stop; Minako in particular had created an elaborate and rather gruesome story of Rei falling asleep in her trance and tumbling face-first into the flames. But Rei knew the fire had something to tell her if only she listened hard enough, and her persistence had paid off.

What to do with this information, though, now she had it? She wasn't entirely sure, but when her feet led her toward Mamoru's apartment, she didn't argue with them.

Only a few days had passed since she was last here, but so much had changed. She knocked quietly this time, for starters, and had no plans to burn the door down.

She WOULD, and without hesitation, if he decided to be difficult. But she wasn't going there with the expectation of ... oh okay, GLEE at the mere THOUGHT of burning the door down.

Rei congratulated herself on growing as person.

It was only a few moments before the door opened, confirming Rei's suspicions that Mamoru wasn't sleeping either. He blinked in surprise at seeing her. "If you're here to hit me, could you do it on the other side? I like symmetry."

Her hands came up in a supplicating gesture. "No hitting. Can we talk?" She thought at first he would shut the door on her, but instead he pulled it wide and stood to the side, allowing her entrance.

Rei nodded her thanks and stepped inside. Mamoru closed the door behind her, and a thick tension soon settled over them.

"Can I get you a drink?" Mamoru asked, conditioned manners kicking in.

"No. Thanks."

That brief exchange done, the silence reclaimed them. Rei worked her jaw, considering her words carefully. Mamoru watched her with a guarded expression, waiting for her to begin; this wasn't a conversation he exactly wanted to be having, and he was in no rush to get it started.

Finally, Rei turned to Mamoru, locking onto his gaze, holding it. "I know about the dream."

His shock was so deep he reacted physically. Makoto's surprise punch just days earlier was like a preordained historical fact compared to having his most guarded, precious secret thrust out there as if she'd just told him his hair was black or it was Thursday.

"That's why, isn't it?" Rei pressed. She wasn't simply looking at him, she was looking THROUGH him. "You keep pushing Usagi away because of the dream."

Mamoru gulped down air like he'd just run a footrace. "How do you...?"

"I saw it too." She frowned, that explanation insufficient. "I saw yours, anyway. In the flames. It's kind of hard to explain." Again scrutinizing him. "I'm right, aren't I?"

It was a question, but came out more like a statement. Mamoru looked at first like he was going to deny it then saw no point. "Yes."

Normally Rei celebrated being right. Even though it happened pretty much constantly, she still got a thrill out of proving her rightness to others. But not this time. This time she just felt ill. "How long have you been having it?" she asked gently.

"Every night," he said, "or near about."

"Gods, Mamoru ..." Rei was stricken, and she looked at him with bottomless sympathy. She'd experienced his dream only once and knew it would still be haunting her for weeks to come.

Mamoru ran a hand through his hair and let out a shaky breath. "So now you know. I can't be with ... her. There's nothing for us but death."

To his surprise, Rei angrily shook her head. "No, I don't believe that!"

"How could you not? You said you saw the dream."

"I did! But that's all this is!" She waved her hands as though to encompass absolutely everything in her definition of 'this'. "It's not a guarantee of anything, it's just a dream!"

His expression melted into one of pure disbelief. "How can you say that?" Disbelief, and accusation; the tone sucked away any of Rei's momentum. "How can YOU, of all people say that?"

"I ..."

"How many dreams have you had, Rei?" Mamoru demanded. "How many feelings, visions and premonitions? How many have come true?"

Too many. Rei could only hang her head.

"I may not be at your level, but I've had a vision or two myself and I know what they feel like when they're real." He paused and regarded her gravely. "This is real."

Unwilling to yield so easily, Rei tried again to make Mamoru see reason. "She deserves to know! Whatever might or might not happen, Usagi should get the chance to make her own decision!"

"And if being with you would kill her, you'd give her that chance?"

Rei opened her mouth to agree, absolutely, to loudly and definitively state that she would do just that, beyond any shadow of a doubt. Only she couldn't quite make the words come. Mamoru saw all this and gave her a sad smile.

"You've had a vision," he said quietly, painting her a picture, "a true vision. You see her next to you. A light so bright you can barely stand to look at her. You know you don't deserve to have her there but you know she'll never leave you, and you're so grateful, so privileged, just to be able to feel that warmth and hope and love touch you. Then you watch, helpless as she's ripped away from you. Destroyed in front of you. That light, extinguished forever in a heartbeat. Because of YOU. Because you were TOO SELFISH TO WALK AWAY."

Tears streamed down Rei's cheeks. Mamoru didn't seem to notice his.

"So tell me, Rei," he challenged. "Tell me how you'd do it differently. Look me in the eye and tell me that if keeping her away from you and making her hate you would save her life, that you wouldn't do exactly that."

She wanted to. She wanted to so badly. She couldn't.

Mamoru had won, but he took no pleasure in it. Again he gave Rei a sad, compassionate smile. "Now, you understand."

Nothing in the situation had changed, but Mamoru appeared better for having shared his burden. His posture was a little less rigid, his eyes a little less weary. He had some measure of understanding, and maybe that was something, at least.

"That doesn't make it right," said Rei, slowly shaking her head. There would be no changing his mind, but it needed saying anyway. "She should be able to hear the reason why."

"We both know she loves us too much to ever accept it."

She had no answer to that. It was a rare thing, but Rei had run out of words. She turned and walked toward the door.

"Will you tell her?" Mamoru asked.

Rei turned back to face him. Again, his expression was unreadable

"I'll tell the others. But Usagi? Where to even start?" She shook her head, becoming angry again, though this time directing it inward. "All this and STILL we can't do a damn thing to help."

"You're helping her," Mamoru said without hesitation, "believe me. And ... you're helping me, too."

It didn't quite reach her eyes, but Rei smiled a little at that. It quickly fell away however, and renewed determination took over. "I have to believe there's another answer. We're not going to stop looking."

Mamoru stood up straight and, inclining his head, tipped a non-existent hat in her direction. "No matter what kind of hardships stand in our way, we must overcome them and keep going."

This time her smile was genuine. "You know you're kind of a dork when you do that," Rei told him.

Mamoru returned her smile. "I know."


	8. Mission Accomplished

The next few weeks were something of a blur.

True to her word, Rei told her fellow Senshi all about the dream and her subsequent visit with Mamoru. Makoto had instantly accepted Rei's experience with the vision, saying that if it was good enough to convince Rei then it was good enough for her. Minako had raised the idea of them confronting Mamoru again as a group, but eventually agreed that given what they now knew, there was little to be gained, and they might further isolate him. For the moment, at least, he seemed cordial and somewhat approachable, which was the best path to change. Ami initially had difficulty accepting that all of this heartache was caused by a dream, of all things, but only for a moment; she'd had too many experiences with magic and monsters defying all rational thought and logic to dwell on it for long.

Their new priorities on this were clear: keep Usagi's spirits up, find out who was sending the vision and why, discover what threatened their princess, and kick its ass.

The first part was easy. The Senshi made plans to occupy as much of Usagi's free time as possible with shopping trips and movie nights and cookouts. Ami decided she was going to teach Usagi chess; Rei decided that Ami was insane.

The second through fourth parts were going to take a lot more work.

Unfortunately, nobody had bothered to tell Rubeus that they needed a timeout, and the situation with the Black Moon Clan rapidly began to escalate.

As it turned out, the Ayakashi sisters were a godsend. Helping others through their pain and purging them of corrupting darkness might very literally be what Usagi was born to do. She seemed to blossom as she worked alongside her friends to ease the Sisters into their new lives. Even her interactions with Mamoru improved, becoming, if not friendly, then at least civil.

Then Rubeus abducted the Senshi.

The details about what happened to them remained elusive. Each of the girls remembered combining their powers to try and buy time for Chibi-Usa to escape, then nothing until a battered and bruised Sailor Moon, a ship in flames, and a desperate teleport to save all their lives. The missing time was completely blank. Nearly blank. Blank, save for oppressive feelings of being trapped in cold and loneliness for all eternity.

They didn't tell Usagi. Usagi knew anyway. She always knew.

By the time they had returned to Earth, it was nearly dawn. Usagi refused to allow any of her friends to leave her, as if they might vanish again the moment they were out of her sight. And so it became an impromptu slumber party at Makoto's apartment. Usagi made her obligatory pancakes for Chibi-Usa (by which Usagi mostly watched as Mako made pancakes for Chibi-Usa), and then the girl was entrusted to Mamoru's care. Finally alone, the floodgates had opened, and for the five friends it became an affirming – if exhausting – morning of tears and confessions and, finally, sleep.

One thing Usagi had been sure to mention was how Mamoru had been such a source of strength for her. It was extremely encouraging, and her friends had shared a smile.

But wasn't long before things begun to break down again. As the tension between Mamoru and Usagi once more surged, the Senshi weren't much closer to answers. Neither research nor legwork was turning up anything, and despite repeated fire readings, Rei could only report that information about the dream's source was "blocked". Then Mako had an idea: send the dream to Usagi. It was one thing for Mamoru to justify it to Rei, Mako said, and another entirely to justify it to Usagi herself.

This had sparked debate about whether they should interfere, given the dire warning of the vision. Ultimately they decided that since the origin of the dream was suspect at best, they had to go on the one thing they knew for sure: that they, as a team, were far stronger united than divided.

When Mako and Ami has front-row seats to another heartbreaking episode of Usagi and Mamoru's Eternal Break-Up Theater, they knew it was time. They eagerly latched onto Usagi's new passing interest in promise rings, got her safely tucked into a classroom, and contacted Rei and Minako. It was well past time to give Usagi the missing piece of the puzzle.

It turned out the whole promise ring thing was yet another front for the bad guys, because of course it was, and the Senshi weren't even sure that their plan had worked.

Until the enemy had been defeated and, for the first time in far too long, Tuxedo Kamen was really with them.

"No matter what kind of hardships stand in our way," he said, "we must overcome them and keep going."

Mars' head snapped up in recognition.

His eyes swept the warriors before him, lingering on each in turn. "Sailor Senshi, let us continue to fight together."

With that, he was gone.

It was all they needed to hear.

"Sailor Moon, why are you just standing there?!" Mars demanded. "Hurry up and go after him!"

Then they were all showering Sailor Moon with encouragement. She didn't hesitate. Usagi ran after Mamoru, not knowing where he had gone, but trusting her heart to show her the way.

Her friends watched her run, each somehow certain that things were going to work out this time.

.

* * *

.

"I think we should order another."

"We've already had two, Mako-chan."

"Then a third won't really matter, will it?"

"Yeah, we're growing girls!"

"You better watch which direction you're growing."

"Don't make me hurt you, Rei-chan."

"Ignore Lady Grumpsalot. This is a party and I say we earned it!"

It was a crisp, gorgeous autumn day. The Senshi were tucked in their favourite booth and sharing a (meaning several) celebratory pizza. Usagi had giddily informed Minako that she and Mamo-chan would be spending the day "reconnecting". Minako had been sure to pass this message along with the single most disgusting delivery of the word "reconnecting" in the history of human speech.

Spirits were high. They'd beaten back the bad guys, and this new Esmeraude person seemed way too doofy to be much of a problem. After a ridiculous amount of time and effort, Chibi-Usa was trusting them, and it felt like they were finally making progress on helping the little girl. The few glimpses of the future they'd gotten had seemed pretty bleak, true, but were easily brushed aside in the light of the sun and in the company of friends.

And last, but certainly not least, the uncomfortably painful rift between Usagi and Mamoru was rapidly healing.

Today was pretty awesome.

"It's been too long since we've been able to come here," said Ami, picking at her pizza. "I've missed this."

"Yeah it's been forever," Minako agreed. "I think last time we were here, Usagi was showering Rei with her love juice."

Rei started choking on her soda. Ami could only let out a high-pitched noise as her hand flew to her mouth. A loud bawdy laugh escaped from Mako as she helpfully thumped Rei on her back.

Minako surveyed the chaos with an approving eye and an unrepentant grin.

"You," croaked Rei, pointing an accusing finger at Minako, "are filthy."

"Guilty as charged."

Mako grinned at Minako. "Girl you're terrible today."

"It's a great day!" replied Minako. "If I can't use it to embarrass my friends then I just don't even know why we bother."

Rei was still smoldering. "I like your optimistic use of the word 'friend'."

Minako blew her a kiss.

"This IS a great day," Mako agreed. "I think it deserves a toast."

Minako enthusiastically lifted her soda, sloshing a bit over the side. "To the success of Operation: Heart Angels, a mission accomplished with NO FLAWS WHATSOEVER."

Rei also raised her drink. "To friends looking out for each other."

"To the power of love," said Ami, a slight blush appearing on her cheeks.

"And thank fuck that's over," said Mako.

"I'll drink to that!" Minako cheered, and the chinking of glasses was drowned out by their laughter.


End file.
